JP6293781B2 - System and method for controlling a power controller - Google Patents

Description

  This disclosure claims the priority of US Provisional Application No. 61 / 736,942, filed December 13, 2012, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

  This disclosure also claims priority to US Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 756,744, filed Jan. 25, 2013, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

  This disclosure also claims the priority of US Patent Application No. 13 / 903,591, filed May 28, 2013, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

  This disclosure also claims the priority of US Patent Application No. 13 / 903,632, filed May 28, 2013, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

  The present disclosure relates generally to the field of electronics, and more specifically to systems and methods for ensuring consistency between one or more low power lamps and power infrastructure that are coupled together. .

  Many electronic systems include a circuit, such as a switching power converter or a transformer, connected to a dimmer. The connection circuit supplies power to the load according to the dimming level set by the dimming device. For example, in a lighting system, the dimmer provides an input signal to the lighting system. The input signal represents the dimming level, which causes the lighting system to adjust the power supplied to the lamp, thereby increasing or decreasing the lamp brightness in response to the dimming level. There are many different types of dimmers. In general, dimmers produce an output signal with some alternating (“AC”) input signals removed or zeroed. For example, an analog-based dimmer uses an alternating current triode (“triac”) device to modulate the phase angle of each cycle of the alternating power supply voltage. This modulation of the phase angle of the power supply voltage is also commonly referred to as “phase cutting” of the power supply voltage. The phase cut of the power supply voltage reduces the average power supplied to a load, such as a lighting system, thereby controlling the energy provided to the load.

  Certain types of TRIAC-based phase cut dimmers are known as advanced dimmers. Advanced dimmers are dimmed “off” during the phase cut angle, do not supply output voltage to the load, and then “on” after the phase cut angle ”And phase cut from the beginning of the AC cycle to send the phase cut input signal to the load. To ensure proper operation, the load must provide the advanced dimmer with sufficient load current to maintain inrush current beyond that required to maintain continuity by the triac. I must. Due to the sudden increase in voltage provided by the dimmer and the presence of the capacitor in the dimmer, the current to be provided is usually substantially higher than the steady current required for triac conduction.

FIG. 1 shows an illumination system 100 that includes a triac-based advanced dimmer 102 and a lamp 142. FIG. 2 shows an exemplary voltage and current graph associated with the lighting system 100. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, lighting system 100 receives AC power supply voltage V _SUPPLY from voltage source 104. The power supply voltage V _SUPPLY is, for example, a nominal line voltage of 60 Hz / 110 V in the United States or a nominal line voltage of 50 Hz / 220 V in Europe. The triac 106 acts as a voltage driven switch, and the gate terminal 108 of the triac 106 controls the current flow between the first terminal 110 and the second terminal 112. When the gate voltage V _G of the gate terminal 108 becomes larger than the discharge start threshold voltage value V _F , the triac 106 is turned on, in turn, the capacitor 121 is short-circuited, and current can flow through the triac 106, The dimmer 102 can generate the output current i _DIM .

Assuming that the ramp 142 is a resistive load, from the beginning of each of the half periods 202 and 204 at times t ₀ and t ₂ , respectively, until the gate voltage V _G reaches the discharge start threshold voltage value V _F. The output voltage _{VΦ_DIM} of the _dimmer is zero volts. The output voltage _{VΦ_DIM} of the light control device represents the output voltage of the light control device 102. During time _{t OFF,} dimmer 102, cut or reduce the power supply voltage _{V SUPPLY,} the output voltage V _{Fai_DIM} dimmer is during the time _{t OFF,} is maintained at zero volts. At time _{t 1,} the gate voltage _{V G} is reached the discharge starting threshold _{V F,} the triac 106 begins conducting. Once the triac 106 is turned on, the voltage V _{Fai_DIM} dimmer during the time _{t ON,} follow the supply voltage _{V SUPPLY.}

To maintain the inrush current through the triac 106 beyond the threshold current required to open the triac 106, once the triac 106 is turned on, the current i _DIM supplied from the triac 106 is Attach current i _ATT must be exceeded. In addition, once the triac 106 is turned on, regardless of the value of the gate voltage _{V G,} as long as the current _{i DIM} is maintained above a holding current value _{i HC,} the triac 106 to conduct current _{i DIM} continue. The attach current value i _ATT and the holding current value i _HC are functions of the physical characteristics of the triac 106. Once the current i _DIM falls below the holding current value i _HC , that is, i _DIM <i _HC , the triac 106 is turned off until the gate voltage V _G reaches the discharge start threshold V _F again. (Ie, continuity is stopped). In many conventional applications, the holding current value i _HC is generally low enough, ideally when the power supply voltage V _SUPPLY is approximately zero volts at time t ₂ near the end of half-cycle 202, The current i _DIM falls below the holding current value i _HC .

A resistor 116 and a variable resistor 114 in series with a capacitor 118 connected in parallel form a timing circuit 115 and controls the time t ₁ when the gate voltage V _G reaches the discharge start threshold V _F. When the resistance of the variable resistor 114 is increased, the time _tOFF is increased, and when the resistance of the variable resistor 114 is decreased, the time _tOFF is decreased. The resistance value of the variable resistor 114 effectively sets the dimming value for the lamp 142. A diac 119 provides current flow to the gate terminal 108 of the triac 106. In addition, the dimmer 102 includes an inductor choke 120 and smoothes the output voltage _{VΦ_DIM} of the _dimmer . The triac-based dimmer 102 also includes a capacitor 121 connected across the triac 106 and the inductor choke 120 to reduce electromagnetic interference.

Ideally, when modulating the phase angle of the output voltage V _{Fai_DIM} dimmer, lamp 142 is effectively, off during the time _{t OFF} of each half-cycle of the supply voltage _{V SUPPLY,} time _{t ON} Turn on in between. Thereby, ideally, the dimmer 102 effectively controls the average energy supplied to the lamp 142 according to the output voltage _{VΦ_DIM of the dimmer} .

The triac-based dimmer 102 functions properly in many situations, such as when the lamp 142 consumes a relatively high power value, such as an incandescent bulb. However, the light control device 102 is less power load (for example, light emitting diodes or LED lamps) in situations where applied, such a load, may supply a lesser amount of current i _DIM, current i _DIM Attaching current It may fail to reach i _ATT , and the current i _DIM may drop below the holding current value i _HC early before the power supply voltage V _SUPPLY reaches approximately zero volts. If the current i _DIM fails to reach the attach current i _ATT , the dimmer 102 may disconnect prematurely and may not send the appropriate portion of the input voltage V _SUPPLY to its output. If the current i _DIM falls below the holding current value i _HC early, the dimmer 102 will shut down early and the dimmer voltage V _{Φ_DIM} will drop to zero early. If the dimmer voltage V _{Φ_DIM} falls early to zero, the dimmer voltage V _{Φ_DIM} does not reflect the intended dimming value set by the resistance value of the variable resistor 114. For example, the voltage _V Φ_DIM 206 dimmer, considerably earlier than _{t 2,} when the current _{i DIM} falls below the holding current value _{i HC,} on-time _{t ON,} instead of ending at time _{t 2, t 2} It ends early at an earlier time, thereby reducing the amount of energy delivered to the load. Therefore, the energy supplied to the load will not match the dimming level corresponding to the voltage _{VΦ_DIM} of the dimming device. In addition, if V _{Φ_DIM} drops to zero early, charge can be stored in capacitor 118 and gate 108 and during the same half-cycle 202 or 204 the gate voltage V _G reduces the discharge start threshold voltage V _F. If so, the TRIAC 106 is re-discharged again and / or the TRIAC 106 is erroneously discharged in subsequent half-cycles due to such accumulated charge. Therefore, early disconnection of the triac 106 may result in errors in the timing circuit of the dimmer 102 and instability of its operation.

  Dimming the light source with the dimming device saves energy when operating the light source and allows the user to adjust the brightness of the light source to a desired level. However, conventional dimmers, such as triac-based advanced dimmers, designed for use with resistive loads such as incandescent bulbs, are unprocessed to reactive loads such as power converters or transformers. When trying to provide a phase modulated signal, it often does not work properly.

  Transformers present in the power infrastructure may include magnetic or electronic transformers. A magnetic transformer typically includes two coils of conductive material (eg, copper), each coil passing around both cores around a core of a material with high permeability (eg, iron). It is wound like so. In operation, the current in the first coil can generate a changing magnetic field in the core, and the changing magnetic field induces a voltage across the ends of the secondary winding by electromagnetic induction. Therefore, the magnetic transformer may increase or decrease the voltage level while providing electrical isolation for the circuit between the component coupled to the primary winding and the component coupled to the secondary winding.

  On the other hand, an electronic transformer works like a conventional magnetic transformer in that it can provide isolation and at the same time increase or decrease voltage levels and adapt to load currents of any power factor. Device. Electronic transformers typically include a power switch that converts low frequency voltage waves (eg, from direct current to 400 hertz) into high frequency voltage waves (eg, on the order of 10,000 hertz). A relatively small magnetic transformer may be coupled to such a power switch, thereby providing voltage level translation and isolation functions of conventional magnetic transformers.

  FIG. 3 shows a lighting system 101 that includes a triac-based advanced dimmer 102, an electronic transformer 122, and a lamp 142 (eg, such as that shown in FIG. 1). For example, such a system 101 is used to convert a high voltage (eg, 110V, 220V) to a low voltage (eg, 12V) for use with a halogen lamp (eg, MR16 halogen lamp). May be. FIG. 4 shows an exemplary voltage and current graph associated with the lighting system 101.

  As is known in the art, electronic transformers operate on the principle of self-resonant circuits. 3 and 4, when the dimmer 102 is used in connection with the transformer 122 and the low power lamp 142, the low current supply of the lamp 142 ensures that the electronic transformer 122 is self-supporting. In some cases, it is insufficient for exciting oscillation.

To further illustrate, the electronic transformer 122 may accept the _dimmer output voltage _{VΦ_DIM} at its input, where the voltage is rectified by a full bridge rectifier formed by a diode 124. As the magnitude of the voltage _{VΦ_DIM} increases at the discharge start point t ₁ of the _dimmer , the voltage on the capacitor 126 increases to the point where the diac 128 is turned on, thereby further turning on the transistor 129. Once transistor 129 is turned on, capacitor 126 can be discharged due to the self-resonance of switching transformer 130, which includes a primary winding (T _2a ) and two secondary windings (T _2b and T _2c ). Oscillation will begin. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the oscillating output voltage V _S 402 is formed based on the secondary of the transformer 132, while the dimmer 102 is on with the AC voltage level proportional to V _{Φ_DIM} as a boundary , Will be supplied to the lamp 142.

  However, as mentioned above, many electronic transformers do not function properly with small current loads. For light loads, the current through the primary winding of the switching transformer 130 may be insufficient to maintain oscillation. For conventional applications, such as lamp 142 being a 35 watt halogen bulb, lamp 142 can provide sufficient current that transformer 122 can maintain oscillation. However, if a low power lamp, such as a 6 watt LED bulb, is used, the current supplied by the lamp 142 may not be sufficient to maintain oscillation in the transformer 122, and a visible flicker, And may result in unreliable effects, such as a reduction in total light output below the level exhibited by the dimmer.

  In addition, conventional methods do not effectively detect or detect certain types of transformers to which the lamps are coupled, and furthermore, low power (eg, less than 12 watts) lamps and the power infrastructure to which they are applied. It is difficult to guarantee the consistency between them.

  In accordance with the teachings of the present disclosure, certain disadvantages and challenges associated with dimming devices and ensuring the integrity of the transformer and the low power lamp are reduced or eliminated.

  In accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, the instrument may include a controller that provides consistency between the load and the secondary winding of the electronic transformer driven by the advanced dimmer. The controller may be configured to supply the requested power value from the electronic transformer in response to determining that energy is available from the electronic transformer, thereby according to the requested power value. Transmit energy from the electronic transformer to the energy storage device. Further, the controller may be configured to transmit energy from the energy storage device to the load at a rate such that the voltage of the energy storage device is adjusted within a predetermined voltage range.

  In accordance with these and other embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for providing consistency between a load and a secondary winding of an electronic transformer driven by a state-of-the-art dimmer is a method that provides energy from the electronic transformer. In response to determining that it is available, the method may include providing a requested power value from the electronic transformer, thereby transmitting energy from the electronic transformer to the energy storage device according to the requested power value. . Further, the method may include transmitting energy from the energy storage device to the load at a rate such that the voltage of the energy storage device is adjusted within a predetermined voltage range.

  In accordance with these and other embodiments of the present disclosure, the device may include a power converter and a controller. The controller monitors the voltage at the input of the power converter, transmits energy from the input to the load with the target current to the power controller, and in response to determining that the voltage is below the undervoltage threshold. May be configured to increase the target current in response to determining that the voltage is greater than or equal to the maximum threshold voltage.

  In accordance with these and other embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may include monitoring the voltage at the input of the power converter. Further, the method may include causing the power controller to transfer energy from the input to the load at a target current. In addition, the method may include reducing the target current in response to determining that the voltage is below the undervoltage threshold. Further, the method may include increasing the target current in response to determining that the voltage is greater than or equal to the maximum threshold voltage. The technical advantages of the present disclosure may be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the figures, descriptions, and claims included herein. The objectives and advantages of the embodiments will be understood and attained by at least the elements, features, and combinations particularly pointed out in the claims.

  It is to be understood that both the foregoing summary of the invention and the following detailed description are exemplary, explanatory, and not restrictive of the scope of the claims set forth in this disclosure.

  A more complete understanding of this embodiment and its advantages will be obtained by reference to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: In these drawings, the same reference numerals indicate the same functions.

Illustrate an illumination system that includes a triac-based advanced dimmer as is known in the art. FIG. 2 illustrates exemplary voltage and current graphs associated with the illumination system shown in FIG. 1, as is known in the art. Illustrate a lighting system including a triac-based advanced dimmer and an electronic transformer, as is known in the art. FIG. 4 illustrates exemplary voltage and current graphs associated with the illumination system shown in FIG. 3, as known in the art. FIG. 4 illustrates an example lighting system including a controller for providing consistency between a low power lamp and other elements of the lighting system, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of an exemplary method for ensuring consistency between a lamp and an electronic transformer driven by an advanced dimmer, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

  FIG. 5 is integrated into the lamp assembly 90 to provide consistency between the low power light source (eg, LED 80 (s)) and other elements of the lighting system 500, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 1 illustrates an exemplary lighting system 500 that includes a controlled controller 60. As shown in FIG. 5, the lighting system 500 may include a voltage source 5, an advanced dimmer 10, an electronic transformer 20, and a lamp assembly 90. The voltage source 5 may generate a power supply voltage, for example, a nominal line voltage of 60 Hz / 110 V in the United States or a nominal line voltage of 50 Hz / 220 V in Europe.

  The advanced dimming device 10 may include any system, device, or equipment for generating a dimming signal to other elements of the lighting system 500, and the dimming signal is transmitted to the lighting system 500 as a lamp. A dimming level that adjusts the power supplied to the assembly 90, thereby increasing or decreasing the brightness of the LED (s) or another light source integrated in the lamp assembly 90 depending on the dimming level Represents. That is, the advanced dimmer 10 may include an advanced dimmer similar or identical to that shown in FIGS. 1 and 3.

  The electronic transformer 20 may include any system, device, or equipment for transferring energy by inductive coupling between the winding circuits of the transformer 20. That is, the electronic transformer 20 may include a magnetic transformer similar or identical to that shown in FIG. 3, or any other suitable transformer.

  The lamp assembly 90 may include any system, apparatus, or device for converting electrical energy (eg, supplied by the electronic transformer 20) to light energy (eg, at the LED (s) 80). Good. In some embodiments, the lamp assembly 90 may include a polyhedral reflector form factor (eg, an MR16 form factor). In these and other embodiments, the lamp assembly 90 may include an LED lamp. As shown in FIG. 5, the lamp assembly 90 includes a bridge rectifier 30, a boost converter stage 40, a link capacitor 45, a buck converter stage 50, a load capacitor 75, a power dissipating clamp 70, an LED 80 (s), and a control. A container 60 may be included.

The bridge rectifier 30 is any suitable electrical or electronic device for converting the entire AC voltage signal ν _S into a rectified voltage signal ν _REC with only one polarity, as is known in the art. May be included.

Boost converter stage 40 may include any system, apparatus, or device configured to convert an input voltage (eg, ν _REC ) to a higher output voltage (eg, ν _LINK ), Based on a control signal (e.g., a control signal transmitted from the controller 60 as will be described in more detail below). Similarly, the buck converter stage 50 may include any system, apparatus, or device configured to convert an input voltage (eg, ν _LINK ) to a lower output voltage (eg, ν _OUT ), The conversion is based on another control signal (eg, another control signal communicated from the controller 60, as will be described in more detail below).

Each of the link capacitor 45 and the output capacitor 75 may constitute any system, apparatus, or device that stores energy in an electric field. Link capacitor 45 may be configured to store energy generated by boost converter stage 40 in the form of voltage ν _LINK . Output capacitor 75 may be configured to store energy generated by step-down converter stage 50 in the form of voltage ν _OUT .

The power dissipating clamp 70 may include any system, apparatus, or device configured to dissipate energy stored in the link capacitor 45 when selectively activated, thereby The voltage ν _LINK is decreased. In the embodiment represented by FIG. 5, the clamp 70 is a switch so that the clamp 70 can choose to enable or disable based on a control signal communicated from the controller 60 to control the switch. A resistor in series with (eg, a transistor) can be included.

The LED 80 (s) may include one or more light emitting diodes configured to emit an amount of light energy based on the voltage ν _OUT across the LED 80 (s).

The controller 60 determines the voltage ν _REC present at the input of the boost converter stage 40 and determines the amount of current i _REC supplied by the boost converter stage, as will be described in more detail elsewhere in this disclosure. Any system, apparatus, or device configured to control and / or control the amount of current i _OUT supplied by the step-down stage 50 based on such voltage ν _REC may be included. In addition or alternatively, the controller 60 may determine the voltage ν _LINK present at the output of the boost converter stage 40 to determine the voltage of the step-down stage 50, as described in more detail elsewhere in this disclosure. _{May be configured} to control the amount of current i _OUT supplied by and / or select to enable or disable the clamp 70 based on such a voltage ν _LINK .

In operation, the controller 60 may generate a current i _REC that is inversely proportional to ν _REC when power is available from the electronic transformer 20 and is based on the measured voltage ν _REC (eg, the present disclosure). I _REC = P / ν _REC , where P is a predetermined power) as described elsewhere. Thus, as the voltage [nu _REC increases, the controller 60 decreases the current _{i REC,} as the voltage [nu _REC decreases, the controller 60 may increase the current _{i REC.} In addition, as will be explained in more detail elsewhere in this disclosure, the amount of voltage needed to regulate the voltage ν _LINK at a voltage level well above the maximum output voltage ν _S of the electronic transformer 20. The controller 60 may cause the step-down converter stage 50 to output the current.

In order to adjust the voltage [nu _LINK, the controller 60 detects the voltage [nu _LINK, based on the detected voltage [nu _LINK, may control the current _{i OUT} generated by the step-down converter stage 50. For example, if the voltage ν _LINK drops below the first undervoltage threshold, such a case indicates that the buck converter stage 50 is supplying more power than the boost converter stage 40 can supply. May have. In response, controller 60 may reduce current i _OUT to buck converter 50 until voltage ν _LINK is no longer below the first undervoltage threshold. In some embodiments, to prevent oscillations or difficult steps in the visible light output of LED 80 (s), controller 60 may implement a low-pass filter that reduces current i _OUT . As another example, the voltage [nu _LINK, if falls below the second undervoltage threshold having a magnitude less than the first undervoltage threshold, the voltage [nu _LINK fall to the point where it can no longer adjust In order to prevent this, the bandwidth of the low pass filter implemented by the controller 60 may be increased as long as the voltage ν _LINK remains below the second undervoltage threshold.

As a further example, if the voltage ν _LINK rises above the maximum threshold voltage, such a case indicates that the boost converter stage 40 is generating more power than the buck converter stage 50 can consume. May have shown. In response, controller 60 may increase current i _OUT in buck converter 50 until voltage ν _LINK no longer exceeds the maximum threshold voltage. In some embodiments, controller 60 may implement a low pass filter that increases current i _OUT to prevent oscillations or difficult steps in the visible light output of LED 80 (s). In addition or alternatively, in response to the voltage ν _LINK rising above the maximum threshold voltage, the controller 60 may activate the power dissipating clamp 70 to reduce the voltage ν _LINK. .

Thus, the boost converter stage 40, in cooperation with the step-down converter stage 50, and the clamp 70, the controller 60 increases as the voltage [nu _REC decreases, and decreases as the voltage [nu _REC increases, and the boost converter stage 40 An input current waveform i _REC that provides a hysteresis power adjustment of the output of the In some embodiments, the controller 60 by generating a substantially constant power to both ends of the AC waveform of [nu _REC, increasing the current i _REC as reducing the voltage [nu _REC, increasing the voltage [nu _REC It is possible to satisfy the condition that the current i _REC is decreased as the current i _REC is decreased.

  As explained above, an electronic transformer is designed to operate on the principle of self-excited oscillation, and current feedback from its output current is used to force the electronic transformer to oscillate. In the positive feedback loop of an electronic transformer, if the load current is less than that required to activate the transistor base current (eg, of transistor 129 shown in FIG. 3), the oscillation will maintain the positive feedback loop itself This is impossible, and the output voltage and output current of the electronic transformer will drop to zero.

In the lighting system 500, when the boost converter stage 40 is generating constant power substantially proportional to the dimmer output, the voltage ν _REC (and hence the voltage ν _S ) is at its maximum magnitude. In addition, the current supplied from the electronic transformer 20 is minimal. In many electronic transformers, such a minimum current may be less than the current required for the electronic transformer to oscillate. Suppressing the oscillating condition results in a lack of available energy from the transformer, and ultimately results in less than the desired value at LED 80 (s).

Thus, in addition to the functionality described above, controller 60 may further implement a servo loop that controls the power value used to calculate current i _REC based on voltage ν _REC. . According to such a servo loop, the controller 60 may generate a current i _REC according to the equation i _REC = aP / ν _REC , where a is a step-down converter (as described in more detail below). A dimensionless variable multiplier having a value based on at least one of the output power generated by stage 50 and the voltage ν _REC , where P is the rated output of LED 80 (s). When starting the controller 60, the controller 60 may set a to its maximum value (eg, 2). To increase the phase angle of the dimmer 10, it is supplied by the boost converter stage 40 until the clamp 70 is in the activated state and the power output of the buck converter stage 50 reaches its maximum value (eg, P). The current can be at a rising level (i _REC = aP / ν _REC , where a is its maximum value). At this point, the output power of step-down converter stage 50 is at its maximum value, so the power generated by step-up converter stage 40 may decrease, but still the light output present in LED 80 (s) as well. Generation may be maintained. Therefore, because the output power of the buck converter stage 50 is at its maximum value and the clamp 70 is activated (eg, the voltage ν _LINK exceeds the maximum threshold voltage described above), the clamp 70 is no longer Is not activated (eg, voltage ν _LINK no longer exceeds the maximum threshold voltage described above) or whether a reaches its minimum level (eg, a = 1, LED 80 (s) rated) The controller 60 may decrease the value of a until it responds to the power generation of the boost converter stage 40 equal to the output. Conversely, if the phase angle of the dimmer 10 decreases and the voltage ν _LINK begins to approach the first threshold described above, the controller 60 can increase a. Once a is increased to its maximum value (eg, a = 2), controller 60 may decrease current i _OUT based on voltage ν _LINK as described above.

  In some embodiments, controller 60 interprets and / or executes a microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal processor (DSP), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or program instructions, and / or Or any other digital or analog circuit configured to process data. In some embodiments, controller 60 may interpret and / or execute program instructions and / or be stored in a memory (not specifically shown) communicatively coupled to controller 60. Data may be processed.

  FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of an example method 600 to ensure consistency between an electronic transformer driven by an advanced dimmer and a lamp, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. According to some embodiments, method 600 may begin at step 601. As noted above, the teachings of this disclosure may be implemented in various configurations of lighting system 500. Thus, the preferred starting point for method 600 and the order of steps comprising method 600 will depend on the implementation selected.

  In step 601, the controller 60 sets the variable a to its maximum value (for example, 2).

  In step 602, the controller 60 can determine whether energy is available from the electronic transformer 20 to the first power converter stage 40. If energy is available from the electronic transformer 20 to the first power converter stage 40, the method 600 can proceed to step 604. Otherwise, method 600 can proceed to step 606.

In step 604, in response to determining that energy is available from the electronic transformer 20 to the first power converter stage 40, the controller 60 passes the current i to the boost converter stage 40 according to the equation i _REC = aP / ν _{REC. REC} can be provided, where a is a dimensionless variable multiplier having a value based on at least one of the output power generated by the buck converter stage 50 and the voltage ν _REC , and P is the LED 80 ( Rated output).

In step 606, the controller 60 can cause the buck converter stage 50 to generate a current i _OUT . During the initial execution of step 606, the controller 60 can cause the buck converter stage 50 to generate a predetermined initial value of the current i _OUT (eg, the percentage of the maximum current i _OUT produced by the buck converter stage 50). . Thereafter, the current i _OUT may change as described elsewhere in the method 600 description.

In step 608, the controller 60 determines whether the voltage ν _LINK is less than the first undervoltage threshold. If the voltage ν _LINK is less than the first undervoltage threshold, the method 600 can proceed to step 610. Otherwise, method 600 can proceed to step 622.

In step 610, in response to determining that the voltage ν _LINK is less than the first undervoltage threshold, the controller 60 determines that the voltage ν _LINK is lower than the first undervoltage threshold. Determine if it is below the voltage threshold. If the voltage ν _LINK is less than the second undervoltage threshold, the method 600 can proceed to step 612. Otherwise, method 600 can proceed to step 614.

In step 612, in response to determining that the voltage ν _LINK is less than the second undervoltage threshold, the controller 60 increases the current i _OUT to decrease, as described in more detail below. A bandwidth low pass filter may be selected.

In step 614, in response to determining that the voltage ν _LINK exceeds the second undervoltage threshold, the controller 60 may decrease the current i _OUT as described in more detail below. And a lower bandwidth low pass filter can be selected. Here, the lower bandwidth low pass filter has a smaller bandwidth than that of the higher bandwidth low pass filter.

  In step 616, the controller 60 can determine whether the variable a is its maximum value (eg, a = 2). If variable a is its maximum value, method 600 may proceed to step 618. Otherwise, method 600 can proceed to step 620.

In step 618, in response to determining that the variable a is its maximum value, the controller 60 may cause the buck converter stage 50 to reduce the current i _OUT supplied to the LED 80 (s). The controller 60 may implement a low pass filter (eg, selected in either step 612 or 614) where it reduces the current i _OUT to the buck converter stage 50. After completion of step 618, method 600 can proceed to step 602 again.

  In step 620, in response to determining that the variable a is less than its maximum value, the controller 60 can increase the variable a. After completion of step 620, method 600 may proceed to step 602 again.

In step 622, in response to determining that the voltage ν _LINK is greater than the first undervoltage threshold, the controller 60 may determine whether the voltage ν _LINK is greater than the maximum threshold voltage. If voltage ν _LINK is greater than the maximum threshold voltage, method 600 can proceed to step 624. Otherwise, the method 600 can proceed to step 602 again.

In step 624, in response to determining that voltage ν _LINK is greater than the maximum threshold voltage, controller 60 may activate clamp 70 to reduce voltage ν _LINK .

In step 626, the controller 60 may determine whether the current i _OUT is at its maximum value (eg, the maximum power that the buck converter 50 is generating according to the rated power of the LED 80 (s)). If the current i _OUT is at its maximum value, the method 600 can proceed to step 628. Otherwise, method 600 can proceed to step 630.

In step 628, in response to determining that current i _OUT is at its maximum value, controller 60 may decrease variable a. After completion of step 618, method 600 can proceed to step 602 again.

In step 630, in response to determining that current i _OUT is less than its maximum value, controller 60 may cause step-down converter 50 to increase current i _OUT . The controller 60 implements a low pass filter where it may increase i _OUT to the buck converter stage 50. After completion of step 620, method 600 may proceed to step 602 again.

  Although FIG. 6 discloses a particular number of steps utilized with respect to method 600, method 600 may be performed with more or fewer steps than those shown in FIG. In addition, although FIG. 6 discloses a sequence of steps utilized with respect to method 600, the steps included in method 600 may be completed in any suitable order.

  Method 600 may be implemented using controller 60, or any other system operable to perform method 600. In certain embodiments, method 600 may be partially or fully implemented in software and / or firmware embodied in a computer readable medium.

Thus, in accordance with the methods and systems disclosed herein, controller 60 causes lamp assembly 90 to supply a first power value from an electronic transformer, and the first power value is available from the electronic transformer. Including a maximum amount of requested power value, thereby transferring energy from the electronic transformer to the energy storage device (eg, link capacitor 45) according to the first power value, wherein Is equal to the product of the voltage ν _REC and the current i _REC . In addition, the ratio (eg, the voltage of the energy storage device (eg, ν _LINK ) is adjusted within a predetermined voltage range (eg, above the undervoltage threshold and below the maximum threshold voltage) ( For example, with current i _OUT ), the controller 60 causes the lamp assembly 90 to transfer energy from the energy storage device (eg, link capacitor 45) to the load (eg, LED 80 (s)). In addition, in response to determining that the first power value is greater than the maximum power value that can be delivered to the load, the controller 60 can cause the lamp assembly 90 to decrease the requested power value. (For example, decrease a).

  As used herein, when two or more elements are referred to as being “coupled” to each other, such term is used to refer to such two or more elements intervening in electronic communications. It indicates that it is connected indirectly or directly with or without an element.

  This disclosure includes all variations, alternatives, modifications, variations, and modifications to those of the exemplary embodiments herein that would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. Similarly, where appropriate, the appended claims will cover all variations, alternatives, modifications, variations, and variations that would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to the exemplary embodiments herein. Includes correction examples. Moreover, a device adapted, arranged, capable of being configured, usable, operable, or functioning to perform a specific function, Or a reference to the system or a device or a component of the system in the appended claims, whether that device or its particular function is activated, turned on or unlocked As long as a system, or component, is very adapted, arranged, possible, configured, usable, operable, or functional, it includes that device, system, or component.

  All examples and conditional terms listed herein assist the reader for pedagogical purposes in understanding the disclosure and concepts provided by the inventors to advance the technology. And are not to be construed as limiting with respect to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Although embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail, it will be understood that various changes, substitutions, and alterations may be made to the specification without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Should.

Claims (15)

Oite and a secondary winding of an electronic transformer that is advanced ChohikariSo location to thus drive the equipment to provide consistency between the load,
Wherein coupled to the secondary winding of the electronic transformer, configured to receive the electronic transformer or we first power amount, the power converter stage,
And energy storage equipment,
Anda controller coupled to the power converter stage,
The controller is
The method comprising supplying the first power amount from the electronic transformer, wherein the first amount of power comprises a maximum amount of the electronic transformer or found available, the requested amount of power, thereby , in accordance with the first power amount, to the electronic transformer or al the energy storage equipment, and transmitting the energy,
And the voltage of the energy storage equipment is at a rate as adjusted to within a predetermined voltage range, transmits the energy to the energy storage instrumentation placed et the load,
In response to determining that the first power amount is larger than the maximum amount of power that can be supplied to the load, characterized in that it is configured to perform a reducing the required amount of power ,
Wherein the controller, based on the output voltage and the requested power value of said secondary winding of said electronic transformer further configured, equipment to supply the electronic transformer or al current. Wherein the controller, the more so as to supply configured the electronic transformer or al the current to the power converter stage, apparatus according to claim 1. The power converter stage includes a boost converter, and the power converter stage is configured to couple its input to the secondary winding of the electronic transformer via a bridge rectifier . Equipment described in. As the magnitude of the output voltage of the secondary winding of the electronic transformer decreases, the current increases, and as the magnitude of the output voltage of the secondary winding of the electronic transformer increases, as the current decreases, the controller is further configured to supply the electronic transformer or al the current device according to claim 1. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the current is inversely proportional to the magnitude of the output voltage of the secondary winding of the electronic transformer. Wherein the controller, according to the equation i = aP / ν to the current and i, is configured to supply the current, wherein, P is equal to a predetermined power value, [nu, the electronic transformer A is equal to a variable multiplier having a value based on at least one of the voltage of the energy storage device and the output power supplied to the load; The device of claim 1, wherein a multiplied by P is equal to the requested power value.   The device according to claim 6, wherein the predetermined power is a rated power of the load. Wherein the controller, the load is further configured to supply current to said ratio is a function of said current, according to claim 1 instrument. Including its inputs further power converter stage configured to couple to the energy storage equipment, wherein the controller, based on at least the voltage of the energy storage equipment, to the power converter stage, said load the current further configured to supply, according to claim 8 equipment. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to decrease the current in response to a determination that the voltage of the energy storage device is below a first undervoltage threshold. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the controller implements a low pass filter and reduces the current through the low pass filter. Wherein the voltage of the energy storage equipment is the less than the first undervoltage second undervoltage than small magnitude threshold threshold, in response to determining that the first of said low-pass filter select the bandwidth, so that the voltage of the energy storage equipment, in response to determining that less than the second undervoltage threshold, selecting the second bandwidth of the low pass filter The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the controller is further configured and the second bandwidth is less than the first bandwidth.   The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the controller is configured to increase the current in response to a determination that the voltage of the energy storage device exceeds a maximum threshold voltage. Further comprising a power dissipative clamp to be coupled to the energy storage equipment, the voltage of the energy storage equipment is in response to the determination that exceeds a maximum threshold voltage, wherein the controller, the power dissipative clamp further configured to reduce the voltage of the energy storage equipment, apparatus according to claim 9.   A method for providing consistency using the device according to claim 1.